Of Love and War
by scrappy12
Summary: The tragic death of Samantha McCall causes and effects many lives to change in the town of Port Charles. After a year since her tragic death, Damian Spinelli seeks out to help his friend and mentor, Jason Morgan, avenge the death of his friend. Spixie
1. Dear Sam

Chapter One- Dear Sam

Some have called me strange. Some have called me a freak. Some have casted me as abnormal, but its what I answer to that makes me the person I am. I'm a man of words, a man of knowledge, and now a man of pain but I have yet to determine who I am in my terms. Staring down on her grave I think how can a life that lived so loudly and adventurously be contained within a box, she would have hated that, being confined…that was never who she was at least to me. I cried learning your demise, it was not since Wise Georgie's demise that I had cried like that before. My soul fell upon the hardness of the world knowing your fate had been that of death, from that moment they dropped you into the soils of the earth I swore that I would avenge you, bring justice towards whoever took you from your place on this earth. I wish I could bring you back, I wish there was something I could do to take Stone Cold's pain away, hell take all our pain away as that may be, but I guess that's me being selfish. He hardly talked in the sense of depth before you left, but now he lives in the own realm of this tragedy, rarely talking to those who are anxious to break down those walls he has put up from the outside world. Sleep has been something he's abused quite frequently looking for your justice, often he has showed me the ropes of what its like in the field, and I must say on my first trial I failed miserably, but I got better. Thinking back on my progression, it wasn't that it had become a skill I obtained to master but from my own pain, and that I wouldn't want anyone else to experience what we currently are dealing with so it makes me work a little bit harder and makes me a little bit more street smart, in which I was failing stupidly in. Which brings me to this moment staring down upon your only proof that you once lived. From time to time I lose myself in the memory to the point where it becomes hard to know my surroundings, which is something I have to get better at if my fear comes true.

Feeling the vibration of the sound waves press against my skin through the fabric of my clothing, I dig down into my pant pocket to retrieve my cell phone "The Jackal" I answer in my usual manner trying not to convey the sadness within the vocal of my voice

"The men have left to retrieve the shipment, I can't guarantee success but I need you to be positive on who you identified" Stone Cold immediately went on to say which meant he was in his business mode as usual

"I'm positive. I've exhausted every inch of the footage and it is most certainly in that of the territory of Delgado" I replied to assure him of my knowledge of the current missing shipment packaging that was taken by a local crew from the port earlier this week "But it grieves me to ask this question though" I sighed before he cut me in mid sentence

"I don't need to tell you what the outcome will be, you should know this by now. Look I don't know what's going to happen, but I need to know that come tonight your ready to follow through on whatever goes down" Stone Cold pressured

"The Jackal will do whatever it takes to bring about justice" I replied convincing my mentor that all that I prepared for was what I ultimately wanted "I got word from Miloh that Mr. Sir is expecting me, do you know what that's about?" I asked

"Sonny is ready to move if it is confirmed. He'll need all his players to be there for the word of what we do next" Stone Cold reported back as if he were a militant machine barking out commands handed down by that of a greater source

"I understand. I shall arrive at my expected time" I replied not wanting any ounce of a uncertainty to be conveyed

"Go home and enjoy your life, Spinelli. I'll see you later" Stone Cold relayed as his final words before he hung up his end of the phone

Looking down upon your grave, I think to myself what has become of this world that we live in. News broadcast report of this monstrous act of brutality, in which we call honor, and respect; but yet its what's common in this line of work. I fear my next visit will contain nothing but that of confusion and sorrow, but I will find the sweetness of your justice once it is all said and done in the end. Placing the scented ecstasy of the flowers she once loved to surround herself with upon her title plaque, I look on once more before I turn to leave getting lost in the haze of the overcast of the day.

In a matter of ten minutes I found myself pulling into the place I called my home for quite some time now. Maybe I did live this somewhat normal life, but the journey towards this conclusion had been far from its shares of ups and downs. Walking down the pathway to the front doorstep, from a far I could hear her laughter, the laughter I had been blessed to come home to on a daily basis, the laughter that made everything in my world feel as if its pales in comparison in world that contained her in it. Just like I had suspected when I came through the door she had been engulfed in her girl talk with once sworn enemy Lulu Spencer, as they seemed to be schooling the frequent visitor Kristina Davis.

"Am I interrupting something?" I asked immediately feeling like I was intruding on sacred girls meeting of that they planned to bash all those who contained testicles

"No, we were actually just discussing the fashion show we just came from" Maxie spoke "All the drama you could hope for was front and center on the stage" she laughed thinking back once again of the event

"The Jackal wishes he could have been in attendance for it" I smiled weakly knowing that this line of work would never allow me to expose myself so openly to the media

"Your guys job is so much fun. Do you go to these things often?" Kristina asked the girls

"Well I just now got into that kind of scene, but Maxie goes quite often to know the latest and the greatest coming on the scene" Lulu explained putting much emphasis on the glamour that Maxie endures from her job as Junior Editor

"Seeing as you enjoyed it so much, I will certainly be taking you alongside next time" Maxie told the young girl

"Cool, I look forward to it" Kristina smiled happily looking down at her watch to check the time

"Does your mother know you're here?" I asked observing her eyes

"Yeah, I told her I was with Maxie and Lulu. I should go though before she sends out the squad cars to come get me" Kristina answered

"I'll give you a ride home" Lulu offered the girl

"Are you sure? I don't want to put you out of your way" Kristina asked

"No, its on my way to my lonely apartment" Lulu said making a reference to her former roommate Maxiemista

"Hmm…live with a girl, who does annoy you from time to time or live with my boyfriend in a beautiful house…do I really need to answer?" Maxie asked weighing her choices

"I get it" Lulu laughed as Kristina and her made their way to the door to leave "Goodnight guys" she said before the two girls left Maximista and I to our lonesome

"How was your day?" Maxie asked me walking over to the patio to let Shakespeare, our golden retriever, inside the house making his way over to his pillow over in the corner of the sitting area

"I see Shakespeare got the boot for the lady discussion" I observed "It wasn't as eventful as yours, but I'm sure my luck could get better towards the end of the night" I smirked making my sexual advance in subtext of g-rated conversation that only she could decode as she joined me on the sofa

"Your right, you could get lucky. Bernie called for you" Maxie mentioned bringing back to the matter of hand that I had to deal with later on tonight

"Oh, he probably wanted to know the status on the office" I shrugged off to burry my face in the nape of her neck

"And what is going to happen to the office?" Maxie asked me wondering herself as to what would be fate of the office that was once occupied by two private investigators

"I have to give it up. I pretty much work from the office here at home or that of the one at the penthouse" I replied revealing the fate of the office only to of doom

"Does Jason know your letting the office go?" Maxie asked

"I haven't really discussed it with him, its really my choice and I don't think something trivial like that would register on his mind. He's going through a tough time and me orbiting around the penthouse does give me an excuse to look after him" I said

"Yeah, I know. Well I support whatever you decide to do" Maxie said leaning over to kiss me on the cheek "You tired?" she smirked appealing to early sexual advances

"Most assuredly" I laughed knowing where this was heading

"Shall we go upstairs?" Maxie laughed. I found her laughter was easily sparked by the sound of my laughter, which almost unable to contain when we were together

"Why go upstairs" I said leaning over to kiss her so that we were laying on the sofa just before my cell phone began to vibrate. In the back of my mind I had begun to hate technology and its dreaded timing

"Who is it?" Maxie asked as I propped myself up on my arm to retrieve my cell phone

"Its Bernie, I have to take this" I said prompting my next action which was to answer what I all ready knew would be the reason as to why he would call so late in the evening "The Jackal" I answered

"Are you on your way?" Bernie asked

"Yes, I'll be right there" I replied quickly hanging up to see the look of disappointment come upon Maximista's face "I'm sorry, I have to go over this footage that Bernie needs" I said getting off of the sofa and out of her embrace

"But why so late? Can't Bernie wait?" Maxie asked

"Unfortunately no. I'll be back soon" I said walking over to the closet to grab my jacket and a pair of gloves that I discreetly had to place in the pockets of my jacket so that she wouldn't see

"Well looks like it'll be Shakespeare and me tonight" Maxie groaned

"See, you all ready filled my place" I said

"I would have loved to get filled myself but I guess I have to settle for whatever is left" Maxie replied

"I'll be back soon" I said before I quickly turned to leave for my regrettable path towards Mr. Sir's household

It felt like a scene straight out of a movie with everything that had the glamouresque mob appeal that came along with being apart of the Corinthos Organization. Never did I really consider myself fully a part of the Corinthos Organization, but more of an association with Jason Morgan, as my skills increased in the field the more I had aligned my position as a vital role in my field of which was needed for the organization. Jason had been the muscle behind all his attacks, while Bernie and Diane covered the legality of the business ensuring that all crimes would remain that of a secret, while I served as an enforcer in my own right but that of the cyber world. I had access to everything and anything to make life a living hell for one with the stroke of a keyboard button, and savy among all the latest technology to create some of the earth shattering weaponry of the new day and age. Arriving at the underground passageway to the cellar that Stone Cold spoke of usually meant serious business would occur, I was released into the darkness of the night to be guided through the dimly litted tunnels by one of the Corinthos guards. Upon entering the room I saw Stone Cold, Bernie, Max, and Diane along with other soldiers promptly awaiting the arrival of Mr. Sir to come in. My eyes shifted aimlessly around the room looking at the many cast of characters that made up one of the most feared organizations in the state and possibly on the east coast if reputation ensued. Taking my place next to Stone Cold, I too began to wait for Mr. Sir to make his presence in cellar, and before I knew it we were all graced with his presence that only revealed to be that of a serious mindset.

"I got word back that Delgado did in fact take the shipment, at least I choose to believe" Sonny spoke

"Delgado wouldn't be dumb enough to enter into the lower territory unless he felt like he could get away with it' Jason quickly replied

"Which leads me to believe…no in fact I know that a Zaccara issued the retrieval of the package" Sonny said

"Johnny and Claudia?" Max asked

"Johnny wouldn't, he maybe next in line to take over as the male of the family but he's not smart enough to do that knowing the implications of his actions" I spoke recalling on my knowledge of Johnny Zaccara

"Leading us to Claudia Zaccara" Jason concluded "Which also ties her to the hit on Sam" he said

"How can we be so sure?" I asked eager to look at all angles before we went after Vixenilla

"The circumstances point to her. We found the disc that has he speaking openly on the hit, numerous audio on her making attempted hits on Jason, her out of the blue pregnancy that would have put her out of the aim of fire even if Mr. C would have figured that she was the shooter, then knowing Michael was the cause of her losing the baby, she'd have all the motive in the world to do so" Max explained

"Thus leading to the hit placed on Fair Samantha" I came to accept realizing circumstance had all lead to that of Claudia Zaccara

"Then we've come to an understanding. Have we not?" Sonny asked the group

"And this would be the point where I must leave" Diane said hearing all that she needed to know in order to be aware of what to expect for the coming weeks so that way if anyone landed in jail she'd know what she was up against "Jason, we'll be in touch" she said before she was escorted out of the cellar

"As of now consider this organization to be at war with the Zaccara's" Sonny declared "Jason I want you and twenty other men setting up the ambush on the Delgado cargos at Port Nizer" he instructed

"We're ready to leave out as soon as possible" Jason replied

"Spinelli, I'm going to need you to get ahold of some the weaponry off shore, have it delivered to the warehouse for arrival in the morning. Then get access for the upcoming Mob Summit, our first statement will be made loud and clear on the Zacarra's there" Sonny told me

"I shall be done by the end of our days hour" I replied leaving Mr. Sir to look on me confused as to what I had just stated "The task will be done by midnight" I quickly countered

Some have called me strange. Some have called me a freak. Some have casted me as abnormal, but its what I answer to that makes me the person I am. For tonight some had called me a soldier. Some had called me ally. You once called me friend, and this why I must do this. Walking out of the darkened tunnel, a few glimmers of mourning light made it possible for me to see Stone Cold gearing up for his task at hand like I had seen many times before while living at the penthouse, all his armor could protect him physically but there was no amount of armor that protected the one thing that had retrieved more damage than any body part than his heart. I never truly knew what it felt like to be in shoes in these situations, and from the emptiness I felt there was no feeling, the only feeling I had was anger, and that was all I needed to pursue what would come crashing down hard on Port Charles. Stone Cold looked my direction as my car was brought around by the guards, we both looked on at each other from a distance signifying that this what we had wanted, but could bring on repercussions unnecessary to this town. Our stare seemed to be that of approval to carry on in the ghosts of ourselves, that it was okay to be this way, when really we lost more than a friend but ourselves the day of her demise.


	2. My Days With You

Chapter Two- My Days With You

The best moments I've learned to love throughout my life have always been the moments of stillness. Most people are in a panic to go through their day, complaining that they never got to slow down and enjoy what made their days so interesting, but if there is anything I learned it is that those moments of stillness is what you'll remember. Covered in the sea of white comforter sheets, I stretched out to realize that she herself had barely begun to wake as she laid beside me. Its not so much that she loved the stillness, but more of the fact that Saturdays had only signified a day in which she got to sleep in from the tired task of being Kate Howard's assistant. Living together we managed to learn things about each other that really wasn't new to know but only added to reason why we loved each other, at least on my end of the deal. Stillness that I speak of always came when I was just with my Maxiemista, and being together always seemed to be easy.

"Uh…what time is it?" Maxie groaned plopping the pillow down on her face feeling the rays of sun peak through the curtains revealing a new day had begun

"Its barely even turning nine" I replied pulling her closer to me in the bed

"What are you doing up? You should still be asleep" Maxie said trying to hide her face under her pillow

"We can't just stay in bed forever" I protested at her of a day in bed

"Yeah, we can. Don't believe the hype of it being lazy to be in bed all day" Maxie grinned knowing I wouldn't buy it for a second

"Really? So does that mean we get to skip your dad's dinner party?" I asked prompting her to moan at the thought of possibly leaving our oversized bed for a family event "Yeah, that's what I thought. You want to get up with me" I asked rolling on top of her placing kisses on the parts of her face that she was unable to conceal

"No. I want to stay in bed…all day in fact" Maxie groaned

"And miss this beautiful and luxurious day, you wouldn't?" I asked trying my best to pull the comforter away from her face

"You try working for Kate Howard" Maxie said tugging against the comforter

"That's okay, I prefer being self-employed" I laughed "Okay, well I'll make a deal with you then" I said quickly grabbing her attention at this point "We stay in bed up until the time we have to get ready for the dinner tonight" I proposed

"I love you so much" Maxie said surprising me when she lunged out of her comforter and towards me to kiss me "You're my favorite" she declared giving Shakespeare all the indication he needed to know that we were up as he ran into the bedroom jumping on top of the bed to join in on our wrestle "Aww, Shakespeare, you're my favorite as well" she said kissing him on top of his head

"So then its settled. I hereby declared this morning a stay in bed day" I declared as I stood up in bed with Shakespeare barking at me to agree with my declaration, causing Maximista to laugh at our corky little family we had going

Fumbling around in the kitchen for what seemed like the first thirty minutes, I managed to navigate my around to find something at least simple to eat for breakfast. Why would people want huge kitchens? Was all I could think to myself because having one only confuses all the items into different odd places. I mean do you really need cabinets and sections in the kitchen, things should just be lumped together like they always use to believe before building advancement tried to appeal to the domestic housewife. Me not being much of a cook, I just grabbed all that I could think of from Oreos to peanut butter, practically all the junk food we had in the cabinets that would fill our hunger. Feeling like a cave man that had retrieved today's meal for his family, I happily ran through the bedroom door carrying all the snacks so much that they came up to my eyeballs before I dumped them all over the bed, in which Shakespeare and her still laid.

"Okay, what do we have?" Maxie asked skimming through the pile of packages

"The raisins are for me" I said getting back in the bed in my rightful spot

"Spinelli, there is nothing remotely close to breakfast related in here" Maxie concluded after looking through all the food

"And the problem would be?" I asked leaning over to kiss her

"What is Shakespeare going to eat?" Maxie went on to ask as I started to distribute food

"Didn't I get dog snacks?" I asked her

"Uh..no" Maxie laughed "We clearly need to go grocery shopping after this. Its sad that two people such as ourselves who make a good living don't have anything remotely on the healthy side" she said holding up a box of orange cream cookies that I had just started to like these past couple of months

"There they are. You clearly know the way to my heart" I said kissing Maximista on the cheek as I quickly grabbed the cookies from her hand

"Your obviously into the whole orange everything now" Maxie laughed

"Well looks like he won't be having any chocolates. He can have a granola, can't he" I said

"Granola, and your serious" Maxie said beginning to laugh hysterically

"What?" I asked confused which only made her laugh harder and Shakespeare to bark at the clueless ness that was painted all over my face at this moment "So then do you want to give up your pop tarts then?" I asked knowing that would grab her attention in which it did, clearly the joke wasn't funny anymore when it came to her giving up her favorite snack of choice

"I think a granola should do, but just one….I don't want him to get sick and starting throwing up like the meatball incident" Maxie smiled

"That was classic" I smiled thinking back to the event of us having to rush Shakespeare to Patrick and Robin in the middle of the night so they could examine him

"All the more reason why Shakespeare shouldn't have my pop tarts" Maxie said

"Well I think we're cutting out the middle man. Shakespeare should be able to decide what food he wants" I said standing up in the bed

"What!?! Spinelli…no…Spinelli" Maxie screamed as I quickly took off running with her pop tarts with Shakespeare running closely behind "Damn you Spinelli, those are the boysenberry kind" she said as she herself joined in the chase

Stealing her stuff was all the more reason I needed to have her chase me around this oversized house, it happened often so I was pretty much running out of options to hide since she was catching on to my hiding spots. Running down the hallway losing Shakespeare once he saw his food bowl on the patio, I began to feel as if I lost my followers so it made no sense for me to run anymore. Just as I joyfully enjoyed my victory of retrieving the pop tarts, I was quickly pulled into the linen closet. Tugging on the light string that dangled from the light bulb above us only to realize that I had been caught.

"Your so busted" Maxie said "Where are they?" she asked

"Shakespeare ate them all" I lied

"Your lying. I can tell even in the dimly lighted closet that your lying" Maxie laughed at my attempt in accomplishing such a thing

"Would you believe me if I said that I lost them?" I asked

"Seriously?!? I was really looking forward to them" Maxie declared "Guess I'll just have to settle for my other alternative" she smiled

"And what would that be?" I asked before she pulled me into a passionate kiss that made every part of my body feel as if it were in an out of body experience that left it paralyzed at returning to its normal state of things

Both of us yearned for control as we ran from both sides of the closet, bodies firmly attached still locked in a feverish kiss. Finally able to gain the upper hand, I quickly pinned her up against the wall as she began to tug at my shirt, both of us trying to relieve each other of our clothing at that moment. Getting caught up in the heat of the moment I quickly pulled away.

"I think I like your meal selection" I said once again leaning in to give her another kiss that grew deeper

"Just try not to make too much noise because that's all we need to have is Shakespeare come in" Maxie said breaking the kiss

"This will be the quietest sex we'll ever have, believe me" I laughed kissing her once again

Coming back to the house that Maxie had called home for so long had always had a mixed emotion because I knew that it always helped her connect to her family, but for me it made me appreciate my last moments before stepping into the ring with her father, Mac Scorpio. Pulling into the driveway we could tell that Robin and Patrick were all ready there probably talking to Mac about being nice to me, but we all knew that just seeing me drove him over the edge. Gripping on tight to my hand to assure me that everything would be okay, Maxie smiled at me as I put the car in park taking in deep breaths. Although I dreaded seeing Mac, having her comfort me only made me realize why I always managed to come with her to these events because it was for her why I do what I do, hell everything I do revolves around her in my mind. Getting lost in her eyes, Shakespeare reminded us that he was in the backseat and that he was anxious to run around and play with Emma, who was certainly his favorite these days as she got bigger. Coming up to the front door with Shakespeare leading the way, we were instantly greeted by Mac, who seemed to be a little relaxed for some reason, I guess Patrick gave him a few beers.

"There's my daughter" Mac declared quickly pulling Maxie into a hug

"And here I am" I muttered to myself looking on at the Commissioner hug on tightly to his daughter

"What took you so long?" Mac asked as we both began to scramble for a good excuse as to why we were late when really we were going for round ten in the linen closet

"Uh…Spinelli forgot to get the cooler" Maxie lied

"Oh, well that's not surprising, if only he'd forget where he lived and just magically disappeared" Mac said getting lost in some sort of dream that clearly didn't include my relationship with Maximista in it

"Okay, okay" Maxie said snapping her fingers at her father to pull him out of his trance like state "Where is Robin?" she asked

"Robin is in the kitchen" Mac informed Maxie

"That's great, if I go in there I might actually have to help" Maxie replied

"Don't you want to help her?" Mac asked

"I don't cook" Maxie replied

"Being in the kitchen doesn't always imply that you have to cook" Mac laughed

"Yeah right, that only works for guys. I guess I could fake doing something, I faked things before, but then again I don't need to elaborate on that detail" Maxie said noticing her fathers sudden interest at what she said "Well be nice and I'll see you inside" she told us giving me a kiss on the cheek before she went inside the house

It didn't take long for the awkwardness to kick in between Mac and I, but the beauty is in the attempt was all I could think about, and when Mac walked away realizing he was forced to be alone with me "Nice talking to you" I said to myself watching him flee inside to watch the game with Patrick as I slowly followed behind

Things were pretty much good, of course I didn't expect Mac to talk to me all that much but then again I grew to appreciate what few words he did throw my way that had a good tone behind it. After dinner we all made our way into the living room so that Patrick and Mac could see the highlights on ESPN for the games that were on while we were eating in the dining room. Out of the corner of my eyes I could see Emma playing happily with Shakespeare by the staircase, which was always fun to see because Maxie and I had been trying to convince Patrick and Robin about letting her get a dog for herself. Just as I smiled on at the sight of young Emma playing, the news soon flickered on the screen. Normally the news wouldn't have caught my eye but the blinking sign of it being breaking news only ensured what my mind ran as possibilities.

"An all ready controversial Mob Summit located on the outskirts of Port Charles turns deadly when thirteen people are wounded and twenty have been killed in what is being called The Zaccara Massacre" The broadcaster said while Mac's cell phone began to ring

"Mac Scorpio" Mac answered turning all his attention towards me "Yeah, I'll be right there" he said hanging up the phone

"Is everything okay?" Robin asked her uncle

"Why don't you ask Spinelli, I'm sure he knows about this" Mac said rising to his feet not tearing his look of anger away from me

"The emergency room is probably going to be packed upstate" Patrick stated

"Happy now? Twenty people killed over your profession" Mac said to me

"Mac, lay off. Spinelli had nothing to do with it" Maxie said in my defense but at this point after seeing the gruesome images I couldn't help but feel like I had everything to do with it

"But I'm sure you knew about it" Mac accused me "Why rush upstate when I can ask an insider what he knew about who could possibly do these heinous acts" he said

"Your being unfair" Maxie said

"And your being blind to think that he's just some mob dork. Maxie, he's part of the real deal and I refuse to believe that he had no idea about what happened tonight" Mac said

"Uncle Mac, let it go" Robin said

"Am I the only one who understands what is happening? By this massacre this means that a mob war has just been declared" Mac said "Now this idiot has placed my daughters life in danger" he told me

"That's enough. Spinelli, lets go" Maxie said grabbing her purse off the table

"You can't run from this Maxie, as much as you want to believe in the good in him, it doesn't change the fact that he helps kill people on a daily basis" Mac said to Maximista

"Spinelli was with me all day. Spinelli was here with us all night, it is not physically possible for him to be at two places at once" Maxie justified "And yeah, he may work for Sonny and Jason but that doesn't make them one of them by a long shot" she reasoned

"And what makes him so different?" Mac asked

"The fact that he's trying to lead a normal life away from the mob. The fact that he can walk away from it all if he wanted to" Maxie replied

"Well he should want to now because he'd be a fool to think that they won't come after him" Mac said looking in my direction

"Yeah, well, lucky for him, he's got people who love him regardless and accept him" Maxie said quickly looking over in my direction to signify that she was ready to leave causing me to get up from my seat

"Are you happy now? Is this what you wanted?" Mac asked stepping in between the two of us

"Thank you for a lovely day" I said pulling my car keys out of my pocket with my head held down

"I don't know what lies you tell my daughter, but I swear to God that anything I find that links you and Jason Morgan to this now proclaimed mob war, I will put your ass in jail quicker than you can blink" Mac said staring me dead straight in my eyes moving closer with each word he said

"And I respect that…I promise…" I said softly before he cut me off

"Your promises don't mean a damn thing to me" Mac said quickly cutting me off

"I'm sorry you feel that way" I said before I walked around him and passing Maximista on my way out of the house

"I'm going to get Shakespeare for you" Robin said walking over to Maxie before they made their way over to Emma

No words could seem to pass my lips the whole drive home as nothing could justify my connection to the Corinthos Organization. For as many times as I've heard Mac's rant about me being a complete danger to Maxie, the more I became involved with the business I realized that maybe his words had truth. Yes, I may not have fired the gun to kill twenty people and wound thirteen but I certainly supplied the guns, from Germany to be exact. When we finally made it back home, I got out to open the door for Shakespeare, who as usual was eager to get out of the cooped up space of the car. Ready to head inside for bed, Maxie immediately grabbed my hand leading me over to sit down on the doorstep.

"I take it you want to know what I know about what happened tonight?" I asked as our hands intertwined

"Is what Mac said true? Is there a mob war?" Maxie asked

"Yes" I replied ashamed to even look her in the eyes

"Did you know about tonight?" Maxie asked

"Yes, I knew" I admitted

"And I'm guessing Jason was there" Maxie concluded from my saddened look that was painted all over my face at the moment "Look I'm not going to pressure you into telling me stuff that you can't. But I guess a part of me is scared to know that your so deep in this thing that they'll go after you" she said

"No one is going to come after me, and if so I can protect myself" I replied to her worries

"And what if you can't, then what? Just answer me this though, how much of this has to do with the hit that was put out on Sam?" Maxie asked

"Lets not talk about this. Just know that I love you and would never get you caught up in this" I said motioning to get up before she pulled me back down

"I need to know. Please, just let me in on this" Maxie asked as I felt the pain seep through her voice

"I can't abandon him, not right now" I said with tears welling up in my eyes as if it felt like I had made a choice within myself to follow through with this mob war even if it cost me my love

"I'm not asking you to, Spinelli" Maxie said becoming defensive over my assumption that I would think she'd do that "I just want you to come home to me every night. I want you next to me when we go to bed and when we wake up in the morning, that's all I want. I don't want to worry if today has been the day they decide to go after you for your involvement" she cried "My hearts invested in you, and I couldn't take it if something happened to you. I'm too much in love with you to lose you" she said trying to put on a brave face

"With every breath that's in me I swear that coming home to you is what I look forward to most out of my days, hell even stealing your pop tarts, literally and figuratively" I said bringing a sound of laughter out of her as I moved in closer towards where she was sitting "Besides I'm a little too much in love with you too to just leave" I smiled brushing away the tears that came to strolled down her cheeks

Deep down I knew she was scared for me knowing that my position in the organization had changed since Sam's death but what scared her most about everything was the fact that at any moment I could be considered a target to go after. In her heart she accepted that this was something that I needed to do in order to get closure, and knew asking questions about the happenings of the organization wouldn't allow her peace of mind. But in the sense of things I was more attached to the organization than ever before, standing alongside Stone Cold and Mr. Sir as it seemed second nature to declare the end of lives that stood in their way of the main goal which was the head of the Zaccara's. The dead and the wounded was all I could think back to, their blood was on my hands and sadly all I could do to justify what had happen was to consider it as just business. That's all it had to be in order for me to make it through this war.


	3. My Promise

Chapter Three- My Promise

The music blared from all angles of the building, even had a catchy tune from time to time I thought to myself as scurried through the air ducts above. My destination had finally been reached once my gps navigation had picked up the main office, where all the centralized computer network controlled every nook and cranny of the overpriced nightclub. Earlier that evening an informant had let it slip that a few of the Zaccara's key players would be conducting business in one of the backrooms of the nightclub, and seeing as this war had been a back and forth battle since its brutal coming out party at the Mob Summit, there was no time to waste at another attempt to go get to the head of the organization, which was Claudia Zaccara. I saw this many times on Mission Impossible on my quest to becoming a man of danger to where I slowly began to feel like Tom Cruise, the dashing man of action. It was all classic, I mean here I was crawling through air ducts of a popular nightclub to complete the ultimate task of getting a leg up on the rival in attempts to advance towards being one step closer to getting to Claudia, never did I think I'd be this useful to do much less be trusted to do this job, usually I just followed behind Stone Cold as he kicked down doors to get me into the centralized network because he was afraid I'd be to clumsy to be stealth. Dropping down onto solid ground of the room, I scanned the room gripping on tight to my gun until I found it to be safe to carry on with my portion of the mission. Hacking for me had seemed to be like stealing candy from a baby, it just got easier and easier each time that I did it, relishing at the thought of my untouchable skills I was soon torn from my thoughts my the vibration of my cell phone.

"The Jackal" I answered my cell phone not tearing my eyes away from the screens before me

"I'm feeling like Chinese tonight, what do you want?" Maxie asked me sounding bored out of her mind

"Uh…Chinese sounds good" I replied giving a moments pause to honestly think it over because food these days you had to be sure of what your hunger desired

"Are you almost done with your little project?" Maxie asked

"Almost, I have to fax the paperwork over to Bernie and then I'll be leaving right after" I lied feeling like if I told her what I was really doing then it would only cause her to worry "I have to go. I'll be home soon" I said before another call came in

"Love you too, sheesh" Maxie said before she hung up

"I love you too" I said quickly not realizing my phone had switched over to the next call

"I really didn't need to hear that" Stone Cold replied weirdly at my statement

"Sorry, Maximista called me about my choice dinner selection" I reasoned

"Spinelli, Spinelli…I really need you to focus and tell me have you pulled up their database" Stone Cold said pulling me back to the task at hand

"Yes, I have. All accounts have been routed to the offshore, I can't really identify who is who as of now but it looks easy enough to figure out" I reported

"Good" Stone Cold

"And the rest I'm waiting on your word" I said just as I could hear a round of gunshots go off and the echo of the crowd screaming

"Is that enough word for you?" Stone Cold asked me sarcastically

"Okay" I said before I cut all the lights out in the building making it harder for Zaccara soldiers to escape through the crowd of people "Now that I think about it, I should've got pizza" I said randomly out of the blue

Creeping up the staircase, I could just imagine the banter I was going to get from Maximista for coming in this late at night. Relieving Shakespeare of his guard dog duties, I slowly opened the door to the bedroom still contemplating buying any form of jewelry that would get me off the hook. She lay peacefully in bed as if she attempted to stay up but dozed off while trying to wait for me to come in. Looking at her through the darkness of the room I found her to be quite the temptation, I couldn't believe what I was feeling but then again I always felt like this when I saw her. It felt like hours had passed with me just staring at her beauty before she began to stir awake.

"Spinelli…is that you?" Maxie asked trying to make me out in the darkness

"Tis I the Jackal" I replied with a little bit of laughter in my tone

"What's so funny?" Maxie asked as she began to sit up in bed with my eyes following every move she made at this point

"Forgive me for what I'm about to do" I said relieving myself of my shirt before I quickly made my way over to her to pull her into a passionate kiss.

Her moans rang within my ear as our flesh pounded against each other eventually uniting to become one. Our lips bruised from the constant attack of yearning for the other like we were each others cure for the disease we called love. Soft and smooth was all I can describe of her body as it lay underneath mine completely fulfilled with what my plans were for it. Gaining control of our pleasure, she had never been one for being secondary during love making, which was ultimately the most attractive thing I loved most about her

"So am I forgiven?" I asked pulling her close to my body

"I should be mad more often" Maxie smiled as I couldn't help but place sweet kisses on her bare arms "What did you really do today instead of that cover story you gave me earlier?" she asked

"We were at a nightclub in Manhattan. Zaccara soldiers were spotted there, and yours truly had to get accounts to see what the Zaccara's were up to" I said knowing that lying would be useless to a girl that was practically a great liar

"Damian Spinelli at a nightclub, by golly I think that's what's gotten you so horny" Maxie laughed

"Well it was all business, but I think a hot girl laying in bed got my so called mojo going" I replied

"You can't say it, can you?" Maxie asked me slightly pulling away to look at my face

"Say what?" I asked

"You can't say horny" Maxie laughed

"I don't think I was as you say horny" I replied to her statement

"You come in late in the night, and all of sudden your in the mood for sex. Spinelli, that was horny" Maxie laughed

"Why are we talking about this?" I asked trying not to let my embarrassment show "I had pure animalistic thought of you" I muttered under my breath hoping that she hadn't heard what I said

"Animalistic thought hence meaning you were horny. Face it, you had an itch you just couldn't scratch all by yourself" Maxie laughed

"I have you know that I scratched my itches perfectly fine before you" I said realizing how wrong that sounded "Wait, let me retract my earlier statement" I said as she couldn't hold back her laughter

"Just stop trying to deny it, I mean I don't blame you. I like scratching your itch, but I'm woman enough to say that I Maxie Jones get horny sometimes when I'm around you" Maxie declared

"Your not going to let me live this down are you?" I asked knowing this was a losing battle

"Just say it, just let me hear those words?" Maxie coached me

"I was horny tonight" I finally admitted "There are you happy?" I asked

"Not as much as you were tonight, but yes, I'm happy" Maxie laughed leaning into kiss me

"Have you talked to your dad lately?" I asked brushing my hand against the outline of her arm

"I really don't need to talk to Mac right now" Maxie replied before I turned her to look at me

"Look I can't necessary disagree with what Mac said the other night, and most likely things will get worse, but I refuse to come between you and your father" I said

"He's never going to understand" Maxie replied as I pulled away a stray strand of hair from her face

"I don't need him to understand me, I just need you to be happy" I replied kissing her on the forehand "Just talk to him" I pleaded with her

"Fine, I'll talk to Mac" Maxie finally gave in

Here I was back at the cellar again, it had become our secret place to meet now that the war had picked up in upper and now lower New York. All over the state organizations aligned their allegiances to either the Zaccara's or the Corinthos organization figuring they could gain out this declared war. Though the Zaccara's had managed to gain ground with enlisting yet another scrappy organization that was known for their trade fighting on the ports, things were still looking good for us when it came to getting close to Claudia and Johnny. Sitting at my desk, I had finished sorting through all of the transactions made by the Zaccara organization just as Stone Cold had hunched in covered in band aids after finishing up a mission.

"What do we have?" Stone Cold asked grabbing a seat at the table

"Just about finished, but it looks like we took out a few minor characters last night. Though it does look like they have been making purchases from sister countries" I reported to my mentor

"What type of purchases? Drugs or weapons?" Stone Cold asked grimacing in pain

"You know maybe you should get that checked out" I said noticing that his stone wall exterior was fading

"Go to General Hospital, if I do that then I'd have to report that it's a gun shot graze to the cops, and the cops would use any excuse to lock me up at this point" Stone Cold replied "That'd be a death sentence" he added

"I can call Robin, I'm sure she won't report" I concluded from his previous statement

"I don't want her involved. I just need to get patched up and then I'll be fine" Stone Cold replied ignoring any advice I had for him

"Stop being stubborn" I said pulling out my cell phone to call Robin

"What…what are you doing?" Stone Cold asked immediately trying to take the phone from my hands but I was able to move quick enough to out of arms reach

"Hi Spinelli" Robin answered her phone

"Good afternoon Burgeoning One, I call in medical request from you" I said

"Okay, what's wrong?" Robin asked as if it were protocol

"I can't diverge such information over the phone, but hope that the Burgeoning One can come by Mr. Sir's humble abode" I asked knowing full and well that she was probably running through her mind the possibilities of danger that she could face even entering the premises

"Uh…" Robin said trying to find the words

"I can send a car for you if your worried" I said trying to ease her worry

"Its okay. I'll be over shortly" Robin smiled

Just like she had promised, the Burgeoning One showed up at the expected time that she had given the Jackal over the phone. Although Stone Cold maintained his lie of wellness, both I and the Burgeoning One could tell that his wounds needed far more treatment than what he was providing himself. Once she was finished applying the ointment to his tender wounds, she quickly relieved herself of her gloves to take a quick notice of our surroundings in the cellar that we had spent most of our working days.

"How is he?" I asked

"Jason, is doing well. I don't know how many more bullets he can take, but he is in good shape" Robin laughed "So I take it by your obvious work set up, that what my uncle Mac said had some truth to it" she concluded

"This is the Jackal's occupation, but not by choice" I replied not wanting to waste time refuding what had truth "But I have encouraged Maximista to renew her connection to His Commissionership" I said

"Last I spoke to her she was on her way over to speak with him" Robin informed me

"And how do you suspect that conversation is going?" I asked wanting to know if Maximista had succeeded in her task

"I really don't know" Robin said

"My goal is to not alienate Fair Maximista from her father, but to love her. I do what I do because I can not turn my back on Stone Cold, not when he has done all that he could to protect me through these past couple years" I said

"Oddly I understand. I worry for you, but I understand" Robin replied "Uncle Mac on the other hand will never truly see your reasons as loyalty" she said

"The Jackal would honor a relationship with the father of the woman he loves, but like I've said before, I'd take his resentment towards me over his resentment towards her" I said

"I believe you Spinelli. I believe you" Robin smiled at me just as Mr. Sir came walking through the door

"Robin, what are you doing here?" Sonny asked before he walked over to give her a hug "This would be the last place I'd expect to see you though" he said

"Spinelli called me to check Jason's wounds" Robin replied

"And is he okay?" Sonny asked with concern about his friend

"Jason will be fine. I gave him a shot and he's sleeping it off now, but he'll be fine" Robin replied "But I can tell that you came down here to discuss business, so I will be on my way" she said

"Hey, is Emma's recital tomorrow?" Sonny asked

"Yes, Patrick is making a dozen copies and one will be coming your way" Robin smiled

"Thank you" Sonny smiled giving her yet another hug

"Goodbye" Robin said before she was escorted out of the cellar

"Have you checked the news Freaky boy?" Sonny asked turning on the television

"Not as of late" I replied turning my attention to the breaking news that was being broadcasted

"Breaking News in Port Charles. Son of Crime Lord, Anthony Zaccara, has turned himself in to LAPD for his involvement in the shooting of Michael Corinthos. He is expected to be transferred over to PCPD sometime later next month" The broadcaster said before he quickly turned the television off

"I want you to find out where they are holding him, Jason will take it from there" Sonny told me

"Consider it done" I replied

"Thank you" Sonny said in somewhat of a appreciative tone "And next time think twice about calling Robin. I don't want her in the crossfire" he said

"I know, but she's the only one I trust with Stone Cold at this point" I said

"Yeah. She's among the few" Sonny said before he left

I felt relieved to finally make it through the doors of my humbling abode to be greeted by Shakespeare, who sat by the end of staircase. Well on my way to the kitchen to grab a refreshing bottle of orange soda before I realized something seemed to be strange with this picture. Shakespeare in some ways was a guide for both Maximista and I, who often guided us to the right path most of the time and the fact that he wasn't upstairs roaming around had confused me. Patting him on the head, I quickly made my way up the staircase to hear silent cries come from within the guest bathroom. Opening the door cautiously I could see that Maximista had done her best to hide away from me but had failed at doing so.

"Hey, what's wrong?" I asked brushing the tears away after I sat closely beside her on the floor

"Yeah, I'm fine. My allergies are just getting worse" Maxie lied

"Your allergic to dust, and I make sure that the housekeeper destroys every ounce of dust she can find, which is close to nonexistent" I said "So tell me what's really going on Maximista?" I asked her

"Nothing. I'm fine" Maxie said

"I really wish you'd just tell me what's wrong because you wouldn't be crying if you were" I said pulling her closer

"Mac and I just got into a bigger argument" Maxie cried

"Was it about me again?" I asked

"If I said no, would you believe me?" Maxie asked

"Yes, but in this case no" I replied just as began to get up from my seat but she was quick enough to pull me back down

"What are you doing?" Maxie asked

"To talk to His Commissionership" I said

"Spinelli, he won't listen to me, and if he saw you he might just kill you" Maxie said

"I don't care. This is all my fault" I protested to her reasoning

"Look I love you for wanting to stand up for me, but this is something that you can't fix. Spinelli, I support you in whatever you do and I will stand by you, if Mac can't handle that then tough" Maxie smiled weakly trying to put up a front for me

"You know I hate this. I hate that I'm coming in between you two" I said lightly caressing her face "Which is why I feel like I have to do something" I proposed

"Something like what?" Maxie asked as I dug in my pocket to pull out a jewelry box "Are you proposing again? You know how well that worked out last time" she said referring to our last attempt at trying to get married

"Its somewhat of a proposal" I smiled at her as I opened the box up to reveal the ring "Its my promise to love you, and to be there for you. Its more along the lines of a promise ring" I told her as tears streamed down her face "I'm going to always be there for you, and I will protect you" I promised her

"I love you" Maxie said leaning in to kiss me as I slid the ring on her finger "Your such a goofball" she then began to laugh

"Oh, I'm the goofball. I give you a ring promising to devote my life to you, and I get called a goofball" I laughed

"Someday" Maxie told me "Someday we'll make this ring official" she smiled at me

"I look forward to that day" I said leaning in to kiss her once more "I'm really looking forward to it Maximista" I broke the kiss to look into her eyes

I could never truly understand what it felt to have a love of a parent due to the lack of parents, but I knew that as much as Maxie protested that she did need her father. Nothing about my job or the world my job existed in made sense but I knew that I had to stand by my family, and from what I know, Stone Cold was all the family I had now, he's the only family I know. Just as much as I couldn't walk away from Stone Cold it hurt to know that she had done so on her father. Her love for me and her love for our relationship fueled most of her decisions, but I couldn't allow her to do so. The lights flickered on as he made his way to the very doorstop I stood. Looking out the curtains, I could see him curse to himself at the sight of seeing me but at this point I was prepared to stay here all night.

"I just want a word with you" I called out gripping on tight to the inside of my sweater

"What do you want Spinelli?" Mac asked making his way outside onto the porch

"I want you to talk to Maximista. You can hate me all you want, but please don't take this out on Maximista" I replied

"My daughter has made her choice, and she clearly chooses to stand by the bad ones" Mac stated

"This is my fault!!! Not hers, its mine" I yelled hoping that it would get through to him

"And yet you still continue to align with the criminals in this town. So yes, this is your fault. I worry every day that my daughter is so caught up in this so called love that she's going to walk right into danger just for being associated with you. Your dangerous, your lifestyle is dangerous" Mac yelled at me with each step he took towards me "You're a fool to think that they won't come after you" he said gripping on tight to my shirt

"I'm protecting her" I said try to release from his grip

"You can't protect her from the violence" Mac said throwing me to the ground "I get that she loves you, I get that, but if you truly loved her you'd let her go" he said

"Your wrong. Your wrong" I said getting up from the ground realizing this was a failed attempt

"I hope for your sake that I am about you" Mac said as I walked over to my car, got in and then left


End file.
